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Chapter 20
The meteor shower was brief, but she’d always remember that night when Erik wished for her to
always be happy.
It felt like someone truly cared about her for the first time.
When the meteor shower ended, it was already late. Ann agreed to stay at Erik’s place, sleeping in the guest room while he stayed in the master bedroom.
After the alcohol wore off, she couldn’t fall asleep. She kept tossing and turning, so she decided to check her phone.
Suddenly, a news story popped up.
“The Fawcett Group hit hard. Jeremy resigned for personal reasons, and Wyatt is now leading the
company into a new chapter.”
Ann was momentarily stunned when she saw this news.
When she faked her death and left, the Fawcett Group was already struggling financially, and the news of her death, caused by Jeremy’s cheating, had sent stocks crashing, even affecting their overseas branches. To save the headquarters, they had to shut down the foreign subsidiaries. The Fawcett Group fell from the top to the bottom in an instant.
When she saw the news for herself, she thought she’d feel a sense of satisfaction from getting revenge, especially after all the pain Jeremy had put her through.
But she felt unaffected like she didn’t care anymore, and she and Jeremy were just strangers to each
other.
She casually scrolled past the news and started watching videos until she grew tired and fell asleep.
The next morning, Ann walked into the dining room and saw breakfast waiting on the table. Erik
had made it early in the morning.
“Go wash up first. Come eat when you’re ready,” he said.
Ann nodded and went to the bathroom, where she saw the glass filled with water and her pink toothbrush with toothpaste already on it.
Erik treated her like a child.
It reminded her of when she was younger and never got the special treatment from her mom. Elsa always had water in her glass, pre–squeezed toothpaste, and clothes put on by her mom, while Ann, too young to do it herself, was always scolded by her mom.
Chapter 20
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She never thought Erik would remember these little things she had mentioned before, and he would try to make up for her childhood regrets.
At that moment, Ann felt something stir inside her. She was cared for by someone.
After getting ready, Ann joined Erik for breakfast.
Once they finished, Erik handed her two invitations. “This is for the Christmas party in town. Everyone here gets one. If you’re interested, would you like to go with me?”
Suddenly, a flash of regret crossed Erik’s face.
He’d known Ann for a long time but had never seen her take part in gatherings. Over time, he learned she liked quiet places and didn’t enjoy noisy ones.
He invited her to the Christmas party because he noticed Ann seemed down and thought it’d be a good way for her to meet new people, but he’d forgotten that she didn’t enjoy those kinds of events.
Ann didn’t answer right away but instead asked, “Do you want to go?”
Erik smiled and said, “I’m fine either way.”
Ann hesitated, holding the invitation in her hands. She could tell Erik wanted to go but was waiting to see if she’d agree.
The truth was, Ann liked socializing and going to parties, but ever since she faked her death, she had stayed hidden, afraid of being found. So, she pretended to like quiet places.
Ann bit her lip, then gave him an apologetic smile.
“Sorry, Erik, I can’t go,” she said.
